How Drones Will Change The World

How Drones Will Change The World

Drones have already started to impact our lives one way or another. Unlike the RC helicopters and planes that dominated the RC world years ago, and still keeps hobbyists occupied today, many people saw the potential of drones from being more than a hobby to something that can help shape our future. It’s predicted that in the next 5 years the sale of consumer drones will triple, and the use of commercial drones will more than double. Knowing what they’re capable of now, can you imagine the purpose drones could serve in 5 years time? 10 years? I believe this is only the beginning.

Drones being used for commercial purposes has continued to increase year by year, from real estate, construction, wildlife care, even to farmers checking their crops. We’ve heard for years that Amazon is planning on using drones to deliver packages from their distribution center right to your door, however, the only thing stopping them are the regulations put in place by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

While Amazon are continuously working to sort this issue out, I read on the news last week that in New Zealand, Dominoes Pizza will start using unmanned vehicles to deliver pizza on time. Not having to worry about flying regulations, the autonomous delivery robot, named DRU, will not fly, instead it rides on 4 wheels along the sidewalk.

But it’s not all about major company using drones to deliver bought items to you. Medical researchers have started the idea of using drones to aid in emergency situations. The idea is that if somebody is isolated and requires medical attention, these drones will be able to access remote areas faster than an emergency rescue crew and drop off medical supplies to that individual.

Jonathan Ledgard, director of Afrotech, is the founder of Red Line. Ledgard’s plan, which is already in development, is to deliver medical supplies to remote areas of Rwanda using a series of cargo drones, flying to and from “droneports”. Red Line has had approval of different governments, including Switzerland, and has raised over $8 million in this project. Ledgard hopes Red Line will be in full swing next year.

This means it could possibly beat Amazon for successfully using drones to deliver goods to the public. And the main reason for this are the regulations we have in the United States. Our skies are much more populated than Africa’s and many other countries, so while having regulations is an necessity for our safety, the struggle is coming up with a way to share our skies with commercial airliners as well as commercial drones.

In a report released last Thursday, the FAA stated that by the end of this year, Americans will have 2.1 million drones. They have also predicted that by 2020, that number will go up to an incredible 7 million, between hobby drones and commercial.

The FAA released regulations for drone use last December, which includes registering your drone if it weighs over 0.55 pounds, but have said they are still working on a full report regarding the use of drones, which is expected to be released in just a few months.

I can’t help but to think of a future where your pizza, mail, things you buy online, are all delivered by drones. While I don’t think drones will ever replace people, I mean, for starters, they’re always going to need someone piloting a drone, I do believe they will become a time saver could possibly even be more cost efficient, and ultimately, this is how drones will change the world.

What do you think? Would you like to see more drones in our future or less? Comment below and don’t forget to share. Thanks!

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40 comments

Very, very interesting post. Drones kind of flew under my radar (Pun intended) the past several years – I’m a young guy, and I can’t believe this awesome piece of tech went completely unnoticed by me. I had heard about the possibility of drones being used to deliver packages and whatnot, but beyond that, I had no clue.

So, what functions do consumer drones serve? Can they carry small packages? Can they make sounds, record video? Additionally, would you recommend any “starter” drones for somebody just wanting to see what it’s like?

Hey Cohan,
It’s true that drones have just catapulted into the spotlight in the last few years. Using drones to record videos or take pictures was new and quite exciting not that long ago, and now it’s becoming a standard for drones to have a camera attached.
Soon we won’t have to imaging just what other purposes drones can be used for in helping people during their day to day lives, each day someone’s coming up with new ideas!

Omg! That’s so interesting. Dominoes is going to deliver with bots that ride on the sidewalk.. that’s crazy. What if someone were to walk over and take the pizza from the DRU?
Another thing is I love the idea of Amazon sending things with drones. Even though it will be super expensive, sometimes you just might need something asap! Haha

Am I the only one totally creeped out by the thought of a drone carrying my pizza across town to my house. I think birds will have a ball chasing drones with food!! I like the idea of drones being able to drop medicines and supplies to remote areas. If the drone phase lasts, I hope we use it for good and not just because we are too lazy to pick up our own pizza. Interesting article!

Hey Lynn, I completely agree that we should focus on using drones for the more important issues like delivering medicine and aid to remote places.
I guess everyone just wants to jump onboard and use drones anyway they can to help their business.
Thanks for commenting!

I personally would not want any package delivered to my door by a drone. I believe drones should only be used by owners for security purposes only. If you own a large portion of land or property I can see using these for surveillance purposes only.

Other than security purposes I would feel an evasion of my rights to privacy but now a days we are losing these rights more and more.

Than I also think about our current unemployment rate as it is. If these are implemented I foresee a large workforce of people released from their jobs.

very interesting read. I live in New Zealand, haven’t heard yet the release of DRU for Domino’s but will be really interesting if and when it does happen. Only recently have I started to learn about Drones and how this could change things. Not sure where I stand on this, on the one hand if it can get my parcels to me on time then great but on the other I’m wondering will there be a camera recording everything.

I like the idea of using drones to faster interventions in case of a medical emergency. Last week, I read about using drones to transport defibrillators that almost anyone can use in emergency situations inside the city. That would be great.
Another use I saw recently for a drone was recording a wedding.

I’m not sure if it’s just me but I find drones kind of terrifying. Being watched is an unpleasant feeling but it’s made much worse by the fact that pretty much anyone around could have a drone. They could be using a high flying drone to watch me, right? If so, then yikes!

On the other hand, like you point out, use by farmers and package delivery is also possible. These uses seem practical, safe, and do not bother me one bit. Also, drones for emergency situations or for dropping off supplies sounds like an excellent idea!
This is a lot to consider!
Anyway, great post. Keep up the thought provoking work!

There are indeed regulations and rules in place to prevent the public using drones to spy on other people. If you ever see a suspicious drone I would probably alert the authorities and have them deal with it. Thanks for reading and commenting.

How Drones Will Change The World – they already are
I really like this Niche – such an important one – when drones are been used in new and powerful ways
A drone basically is – getting a pair of eyes into places that you physically cannot go or safely go and give you access to View – and possible action
I like how you have deigned it easily and in a very readable manner

Interesting post! Wow, unmanned vehicles delivering pizza? Going along the sidewalk, they don’t even need to worry about traffic, huh.

I don’t get too excited when I imagine that one day when we look at the sky, we see so many objects flying around and cannot even appreciate the beauty of the sky. But I understand drones will greatly contribute to saving lives in an emergency situation. As for its commercial use, they will be the big part of the delivery industry for sure. In a few years, we may not see as many UPS guys on the road.

Hmmm, I don’t know if we’ll see drones ever replace actual couriers, or take away many jobs from other workers. I mean, no matter how many drones there are, you’re always going to need somebody to fly them 😉

Wow, how interesting! Great article! It is crazy idea, although it doesn’t look like impossible, to deliver goods by drones 🙂 It sounds futuristic but I think we probably see it in next couple of years. I like the idea of using drones for emergency situations, it definitely will help with places which are hard to reach!

Hi David,
I was reading through the previous comments on this article and they made me realize that new technology that gains popularity has the potential to change things for the better and for the worse! I love the idea of drones being used for better customer service (package deliveries), for humanitarian reasons (delivering emergency aid and supplies). And then there’s the other side of the fence. Ever see Sci-Fi movies with large drones hovering, watching and pursuing the population? Call me a pessimist, but I don’t always trust other people or our elected officials. Can’t wait to see what happens in the next 10 years or so. Cool article. Lots of food for thought:)
Alyssa

Hey Alyssa,
I completely understand where you’re coming from. We have many, many movies that warn us of the dangers of robots taking over the world, lol. Artificial Intelligence kinda worries me, but I feel that’s only because I don’t understand too much about it.
Thanks for the comment, Alyssa!

Hi Davby, I think drones have already changed the world but that there is more to come. I’m still not sold on the idea of autonomous zones delivering pizza or Amazon goods – maybe they can avoid other objects and overhead wires but what about airgun pellets or even bullets in the USA?

Hey Ian, I know what you mean. Just like a scene from the TV show Parks and Recreation where Ron shoots down a drone, I’ve heard real news stories of drones being shot at. That’s what scares me, knowing there are people out there who will shoot at something like a drone, even if it’s not over their property. And I doubt drones will ever be made bulletproof.

Loving the site buddy! It’s funny, because today I was skateboarding at my local skate park and I saw one of the guys using what appeared to be a helicopter/drone. It was pretty cool, he was just messing around with it, making it hover above us as we skated haha! I definitely think that drones will be utilised more in the future, it’s definitely safer in certain cirumstances, especially in medical and emergency situations as you mentioned. Thoroughly enjoyed reading the article, a must read for tech fans 🙂

Hey Chris, thank you so much for reading. I’m glad I’ve managed to show you a new side to drones, and how useful they can be. I understand drones have a bad rep, they’re mostly in the news for something negative, so hopefully moving in the right direction by helping many people will change the way people think about drones.
David.

Drones are so cool. You can do so many interesting things with them. The photographers used one at my recent wedding to capture some different perspectives for video footage. Loved it. My brother-in-law has one that he occasionally flies out over the beach to film his son surfing.

You make mention of drones delivering pizzas, and Amazon delivering books. Is any company actually using drones for purposes like this yet?

Hey, Darren, we’re still in the very early stages when it comes to bigger companies using drones, and it all comes down to the government. They don’t know yet how to make it work, to be able to share the skies with airliners, etc. Safety is definitely their priority here.
I love how local photographers are using drones now. They can certainly make events like weddings look so much more amazing in my opinion.
Thanks for commenting!

I would like to see drones play more of a role in our society. As Americans, it would be great to have our goods delivered more quickly and efficiently. That could do wonders in reducing traffic. Although, I think it’s great that drones would enhance the standard of living I think that the service they’ll be able to provide underdeveloped countries like Africa would be an even more important reason why the use of drones should be pursued.

Hi,
Drones are cool. I feel bad for people that work as delivery people. If drones replace them, then they would be out of a job. Many people would be unless their company has another job in lined for them. I haven’t seen any drones yet. I see drones in movies. I hope they don’t ever use them for illegal purposes. Thanks for the information.
Sofia

Hey Sofia,
Maybe these companies using drones to deliver things will teach these workers how to fly them. With practice, even the novice pilots can become well skilled. Thanks for commenting and sharing your thoughts!
David.

I had worked with a guy who was into hobby drones. I think he mentioned a group that raced them somewhere in the state I live in. I think drones are cool and we’ll probably see more of them as time goes on. Wow! 7 million by 2020? That’s amazing! How far we have gone!

Hi Kevin, I’ve noticed drone racing becoming more popular as well. There are Leagues, and official races around the world where people can win some serious money. It’s crazy! I think ESPN will start broadcasting these bigger races starting next year.
Thanks for reading!

Drones are growing in our society more and more everyday, I have never actually experienced a drone myself.

I am a little scared of these so called drones, are they really safe and what might happen if they malfunction? What is the chance they could do people harm, I am just a bit anxious about these drone right now

It’s a possibility that they could malfunction and fall from the sky, or get blown away in the wind, but pilots are always encouraged to fly drones in less populated areas, like a park or something. Most drones today can also safely land on its own if it ever loses signal with the transmitter.
I hope this eases your mind a little, Jeff.

Haha, drones delivering pizza’s :p I had to laugh so hard with that. I can’t wait to see this happen. How do you tip the new ‘pizzaboy’ then? 🙂 I like your article, nice writing, i too believe that drones will have a big impact in the future, there is no doubt abaout that. It’s nice to see technology evolve like this, but on the other hand, isn’t this going to cost us a lot of jobs? I’m sure the pizzaboy isn’t going to be so happy with this 🙂

Hi David – always interested in your articles here on the world of drones.

You say they will always need someone to pilot them? Don’t you think that more and more drones will become autonomous? I mean, I can well imagine with GPS and a degree of on-board intelligence, drones could navigate in cities quite easily – of course, provided the regulatory situation is sorted out and collision avoidance built in.

I definitely think that drones have a future in many aspects of life, but there are probably a few hurdles to overcome. Power – most rely on LIPO batteries I think, and these do have a habit of self destructing once in a while; weather extremes – what are the operating parameters for these drones in terms of wind speed, temperature etc?

Like self-driving vehicles, the largest hurdles are probably in liability – two drones collide and land on a car damaging it – who is responsible?